Under the Fiery Stars
by Rudolfs0807
Summary: A romantic oneshot with my OC shio and Ty Le. I wrote this as a sort of present for my girlfriend's birthday and it turned out so good i had to post it. It's loosely based on the night I asked her out she loved it and thought it was adorable. I hope You guys enjoy it! Please leave a review if you liked it!


****A/N: So this is just a little oneshot I wrote. I wrote it for my wonderful girlfriend's birthday and it turned out so well I had to post it.  
>It's a short story involving my OC Shio (you can see more of him in my Story Air Earth Water Fire and Steel. it's in my stories) and Ty Lee<br>The story is loosely based around the night I asked my girlfriend out I think it turned out excellent. please tell me what you think of it and thanks for reading****

Under the Fiery Stars

Shio lay back on a large sloped volcanic boulder. The rim of the extinct volcanic caldera that housed the Fire Nation capitol city was ideal for stargazing. He looked out towards the surrounding countryside, ignoring the sparkling lights of the capitol in favor of the glowing band that stretched across the sky. Some called this band 'The Milky Way'; Shio didn't care what it was called, all he knew was that it was beautiful.

This was the first time in over two weeks he had time to himself. The endless meetings with Firelord Zuko's defense council on how to combat the uprising of Ozai loyalists ate up much of his time and the rest of his time was devoted to keeping himself in shape and helping with Azula's rehabilitation.

This far away from the city, light pollution was minimal and the view of the sky was absolutely spectacular. His unusual eyes scanned the heavens, just admiring its beauty. To an observer he knew his eyes were weird looking; the permanently dilated pupils made his eyes look almost completely black, only if you looked very closely could you see the tiny ring of light brown around the edge of the black.

This deformity made his eyes incredibly sensitive to light, so he had to wear protective sunglasses in most places. Only in mostly dark conditions like now could he take them off without causing himself severe pain. The only advantage this deformity gave him was better than average night vision, where most could only see a few thousand stars in the sky he could see millions. These were the only times he ever felt truly free; he saw his glasses as a prison, one which he would never be able to truly escape from.

He sighed to himself; he hadn't been able to see his friends in a non-business setting in weeks. He honestly felt more alone than he had in a long time. He sighed again, his thoughts drifting back to his disability. He was pretty sure the only people who have ever seen his eyes for any length of time were Katara and Sokka and maybe Aang. Katara had examined them once to see if she could possibly heal them but she told him that she wasn't confident enough in her own abilities to attempt it, if she did the wrong thing, he might go blind in one or both eyes. Sokka had seen them on many a night operation during their time together. Aang had probably seen them the least out of the three, while they were now good friends, he had never been terribly comfortable around the swordsman because of his dark past.

Honestly, he could probably wear his glasses less than he did, not wearing them inside the palace didn't cause him much discomfort. He kept them on for the benefit of others. Experiences in the past showed him the effect they had on others. People would be creeped out and eventually they would distance themselves from him.

He liked his friends too much; he didn't want to alienate himself from them; especially from Her…

"Oh, hey there!" a cheerful, bubbly voice shouted from behind the rock startling Shio out of his dark, brooding thoughts, causing him to jump a little bit. Instantly recognizing the voice, he whipped his glasses out of his pocket and put them on. Luckily enough light penetrated the lenses so he could see her rounding the rock.

"Spirits, Ty Lee," he said good humoredly, "You scared the crap out of me!"

"Sorry!" she said as she stopped at the bottom of the slope of the boulder, a mischievous grin adorning her pretty face, obviously not the least bit sorry.

She did a half flip and walked on her hands up to where Shio lay, laying down on her back next to him. She was wearing her usual pink, midriff baring outfit; she tucked her hands behind her head, using them as a makeshift pillow.

She had returned from Kyoshi Island about a month ago but Shio hadn't been able to spend any significant amount of time with her, the seemingly endless plans to stop the rebels and helping to oversee Azula's treatment kept getting in the way.

They had shared a few quick conversations in passing in the halls of the Palace and had made a little small talk at the occasional meal with 'Team Avatar' but this was the first time where neither of them had nowhere to be or anything to wake up early for.

On her return, she had explained to the group that she really enjoyed being a Kyoshi Warrior, but ultimately she missed her friends and her home and decided to return to the capitol. She had left Kyoshi Island with good standing and she said that they would welcome them back at any time she wanted.

"What are you up to?" she asked after a few moments of silence, not averting her gaze from the stars overhead.

"Stargazing." He replied simply.

She gave a little snort, "With sunglasses on? Isn't it hard to see, well, anything?"

He shrugged, a little apprehensive of where this conversation was going, Ty Lee was very forward about what was on her mind, "Enough light gets throu-"

A loud sigh interrupted him, the acrobat flipped onto her side, propping her head up on her elbow, "Oh come on Shio," she said exasperatedly, a small frown creasing her brows., "You and I both know that's bison crap."

He turned his head towards her, raising an eyebrow, "What do you mean?"

She sighed again, "I saw you put them on when I came around the rock, and I've ran into you at least once in a dark corridor in the palace and you put them on before you talked to me. Even when we were in prison without your glasses, you did your best to hide your eyes from me. Why?"

She reached her hand out for the metal frames, but he gently but firmly pushed her hand away. "It's..." he paused trying to gather his thoughts; ordinarily he would lie, but he found in nearly impossible to tell her anything but the truth. "It's because…" he paused again.

She must have seen he was having a hard time with this because she put her hand reassuringly on his, giving him a reassuring smile.

He smiled back, "Because my eyes aren't just sensitive to light, the reason they're sensitive to light is because of a deformity. And the way they look creep people out." He swallowed nervously, "when people see them they can't help but look at me differently afterwards; and they draw away, alienate me from them."

He squeezed her hand slightly, "I wear them around you because I don't…I-I don't want to drive you away… your…your friendship means too much to me…" he looked at her beautiful face through the tinted lenses as best he could trying to read her expression.

He expected her to say something like _'Awww, how sweet!'_ or even to distance herself from him; but the last thing he expected her to do was burst out laughing.

He frowned in confusion as her seemingly musical laughter echoed through the quiet night air. She was almost crying from laughter now, he felt a smile tug at the corners of his mouth, her laughter was infectious.

"What?" he asked, grinning now, "What's so funny? I was being serious!"

She wiped away a tear as her laughter slowed, "Drive me away?!" she asked seemingly in disbelief, "Have you had a good look at my life Shio?"

Propping himself up on his elbows, he cocked his head to the side, not comprehending her point.

"Well let's see," she said sitting cross-legged now and beginning to count on her fingers, "I'm part of a set of identical sextuplets; of my two best girlfriends, one is a murderous, power mad psychopath and the other is perpetually depressed despite the fact that she's hooking up with the freaking Firelord; I joined the circus for two years; oh and I betrayed my best friend pretty much on a spur of the moment decision."

Shio continued to look confused, not quite getting her point.

She smiled, giving his hand another squeeze, "My point it that my life has been filled with weird crap from day one. Trust me; I don't care how weird you think your eyes are, they're nothing I can't deal with."

She once again reached for the glasses; he moved his head away from her hand, still reluctant despite her assurances. He sat up, looking away from her.

She scooted closer, wrapping and arm around his shoulders; he could feel her breasts pressing against his right arm.

"Hey…" she said softly, giving him an encouraging smile, "you're one of my best friends, we haven't known each other all that long but…" she swallowed, bad memories surfacing in her mind, "In that prison, you were there when no one was. You got me through that place, nothing can change my feel- uhm, my opinion of you."

She gently turned his head until he was looking at her. She gave him a soft smile and reached for the frames one last time. This time she met no resistance; she pulled the glasses off and set them to the side. Shio did his best to look anywhere but at her. No one had ever seen his eyes this close in a social setting and he still was not comfortable with this.

"Shio, look at me." She said gently, but his eyes continued to dart around.

"Shio…" she grew tired of this and gently put her hands on both his cheeks and forced him to look her in the eyes, "Look at me."

She spent a long time studying his eyes; he could do nothing but stare into her grey ones. It was the grey of an overcast day and as he looked closer he thought he could see tiny flecks of the yellow color typical of a Fire Nation citizen.

"Why are you ashamed of them? I think they're pretty in an odd sort of way." she asked, bringing him back to reality. She moved her hands from his cheeks, looping them around the back of his neck. While he could move his gaze if he wanted to he chose not to, his eyes roamed around her face, drinking in every detail he could; she really was an incredibly attractive girl.

"I'm not ashamed, I'm just-"

"Shio, I can read auras. You can't hide your feelings from me."

He frowned, looking down at the ground, "Because they make me weak. I could be so much better, so much more effective at being a fighter if not for these damn eyes." He was getting slightly angry now, "but instead I have to wear these stupid glasses which limit my peripheral vision and prevent me from ever living a normal life. I'm a freak."

"You're not a freak." She said firmly, almost angrily even, her hands working his fingers out of fists he didn't even realize he was making, "No one care about how you look, and you're one of the strongest people I know. You endured all kinds of torture at the hands of those guards and you didn't crack once. And other than Master Pinado, you're the best swordsman I've ever seen." She ran her thumbs soothingly along his hand as she clasped them in her own. "Just look at Zuko. He has a massive scar on half his face, and he owns it; it's a part of him, just as your eyes are part of who you are."

He gave her a big smile, now feeling much more comfortable with his eyes. "Thanks, I feel much better, I mean it."

Her smile widened into one of her signature goofy grins, "It's what friends do!" she said simply.

He took a moment to look at her. She was gorgeous. She had a very well-toned figure; he could see lean muscles outlined by her tight fitting outfit. She had an hourglass figure and had and ample breasts. It was no wonder all of the boys were always ogling her.

"Brr…" she said a visible shiver running down her body, the night air was definitely starting to cool off.

"You cold?" he asked, without even waiting for an answer he removed his red and yellow coat and draped it over her shoulders.

She pulled it tight around herself, "You're sweet, you know that?"

He gave a small laugh and blushed slightly, "I try."

She got up from where she sat and made her way to near his feet, she gently pushed his knees open and nestled herself between his legs, using his chest as a pillow. He wrapped his arms around her bare middle and he felt her hum contentedly.

They sat there for a while enjoying each other's company and warmth.

Ty Lee was the first one to break the contented silence, "This is nice," she said adjusting her long braid against his chest, "I wish we could just stay her and not have to worry about all of that crap in the capitol."

"Yeah, me too. I love nights like this." Something in the back of his head was screaming _'Now! Now! Ask her now!' _he decided to take the voice's advice, it felt right.

"So," he began, fumbling for words, "Awkward question," _There's no turning back now_, "Would you like to go out with me sometime? Like on a date?"

He waited with baited breath, he felt he shift against him slightly, she tilted her head back so she could look him in the eyes, he saw she had a happy grin on her face. "I think I'd like that."

Outwardly he just smiled, but inside he was freaking out: _"She said yes! She said yes!"_

She flipped around so she now faced him, her hands on his chest, and then gently pushed him down till he was lying flat on his back. She moved up a little bit so she could comfortably rest her chin on his solar plexus. She draped the coat over the both of them and sighed in contentment.

She gave a crooked grin, "I honestly never thought you'd ask me,"

He raised an eyebrow, "You knew I like you?"

She laughed, "Subtlety is not your strong suit," she said grinning, giving him a rather seductive look, "and as I said," She put her hands on his shoulders, using them to pull herself up so her face was now hovered right above his, "You can't hide your feelings from me..."

She slowly dipped her head down, placing a gentle lingering kiss on his lips. Shio was too stunned to respond from a moment but then began kissing her back. They only kissed for a few moments when they broke apart, Ty lee looked down at him and gave a short bark of laughter, probably at the completely stunned expression on his face.

She lay back down, resting her chin on his chest again, Ty still had a big grin on her face, "Was that your first?" she asked cocking her head slightly to the side, "not criticizing, just curious."

He nodded an affirmative, still at a loss for words.

"Well," she said coyly, "If you play your cards right there will be plenty more where that came from."

He smiled at the thought and wrapped his arms around her back. After a few minutes of quiet snuggling, Ty Lee let out a large yawn.

"You know," she said a little sleepily, "It's kind of late and we've both had a long week, why don't we head back to the Palace?"

"Alright," he replied as she climbed off of him and handed him his jacket back. He buttoned it back up and strapped his broadsword onto his back. He sighed, putting his glasses back on his face before he turned back to face the lights of the capitol.

"Hey," Sensing his melancholy at having to wear them again, "If it's any consolation, I think you're cute whether you're wearing them or not."

He smiled and shook his head, "You always know just what to say to make me feel better."

The climbed down the rocks carefully, Shio taking a more careful, slow route whereas Ty Lee jumped from rock to rock, using her acrobatic skills to keep from getting hurt. They reached the outskirts of the city in a short time and began the long trek back to the palace.

As they walked through the brightly lit streets of the capitol, Shio slipped his hand into hers, entwining their fingers together.

"I do have one question about all this," Shio said.

"Ok, shoot."

"How did you know where I was? I've never told anyone about that spot. Not that I'm complaining mind you," he added quickly, not wanting to sound like her intrusion was unwelcome, "I had a great time."

She looked at him a little sheepishly, "I'll be honest, I asked one of the spies I know, he told me where you were."

"Spies? I guess they're keeping tabs on us for safety." _Or are they? _He made a note of this for future reference.

The nightlife of the capitol was in full swing that night, more than once they got recognized by drunken citizens who insisted on shaking their hands; A few even made note of the fact that they were holding hands and looked at each other knowingly.

Eventually they made it back to the palace and walked together to Ty's room. They stood facing each other outside her door. Shio frowned slightly.

"What's wrong?" she asked looking worried.

"It's just I don't know when I'll be able to see you next." He said fidgeting with the fringe of his jacket, "This is the first night in two weeks where I've had any decent amount of free time."

She took both of his hands in hers and gave them a gentle, encouraging squeeze, "I know, with the rebels getting closer to the capitol they need you." She looked sad for a moment but quickly brightened up, "I know we can make this work," she said a small smile on her face, "We've been flirting too long for this not to work!"

He chuckled; they had been flirting for a long time, neither of them having the time or the courage to make the first move.

"We'll make it work." She continued, "Why don't you come pick me up the next night you have free time and we'll go stargazing again. I'll even pack some food; we'll make a picnic out of it!"

"I'd like that," he said giving her smirk, "I'd like that a lot."

She beamed at him, practically glowing with happiness.

The stood there awkwardly for a few moments, their still joined hands swinging idly between them.

Ty was the first to break the silence, "Well, I had a lot of fun tonight," she said, "But I think it's time I went to b-"

He cut her off with a gentle kiss. They drew closer, their arms wrapping around the other, eventually the kiss broke off, but they remained holding each other for a few moments.

"Goodnight beautiful…" he whispered in her ear as he let go. He saw a shiver run down her spine and a big goofy grin spread across her face. He waved goodnight and headed down the hall. He waited until he was out of her sight and then practically danced all the way back to his own room.

He couldn't figure out what he had done to deserve this, this was the happiest he had ever been in his life. And he couldn't wait to see her more.


End file.
